Gritty winger Arron Asham is officially a former Flyer. He's also officially a Penguin.
That's obviously gonna hurt a little for fans of AA in Philly.
Asham is a versatile lower-line player with limited offensive upside but consistent toughness and solid enough play. He allows a team to sit their enforcer rather than skate him for a few shifts just to have him on the bench in case a need arises, as Asham isn't one to back down from even a heavyweight but can give you third line minutes. The Flyers presumably felt they needed a true enforcer and went with Jody Shelley, and also that they needed more scoring from their forward lines, going with a top-9 approach rather than a top-6/bottom-6. Asham won't be mistaken for a scorer, though he did contribute some clutch goals and shifts that led to others. They also have plenty of toughness in the forward ranks with Lappy, Chico, Richards, and Hartnell, but their fight cards won't include any heavyweights. That'll be Shelley's work.
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We liked Asham a lot here, and we hope we don't have to watch him put up four goals and three assists for the Pens in next year's playoffs. Doesn't sound like much, but it made a difference.